Hi.
I'm Dr.
Kim.
I help people heal chronic pain and stress with somatic movement,
Meditation,
And energy work.
Today I want to share about why moving in spirals or circles is so important.
Our nervous system is always asking one question.
Am I safe?
When the answer is no.
Whether we are running away from a real danger or simply feeling overwhelmed by work,
Relationships or life.
The body shifts into that fight,
Flight or freeze mode.
And in that state,
Survival becomes everything.
Your eye focus narrows.
Your breathing becomes quicker and shallower.
And your muscles will brace for action.
Instead of wondering,
What possibilities are available to me right now?
The mind instead asks,
What is the fastest way out?
What is the quickest solution?
This narrowing of attention is incredibly important.
If our ancestors were being chased by a predator,
They didn't need openness or creativity.
They did not need any curiosity.
They needed one thing.
To move quickly in the direction of safety.
The same thing happens to modern-day humans too.
In times of stress,
Our thinking becomes linear.
For example,
Imagine you receive an email from your boss.
And it says,
Can we talk?
Instantly,
Your nervous system begins scanning for danger and jumping to conclusions.
You start to think,
Am I in trouble?
What did I do?
What should I say?
Are they gonna fire me?
Your thinking becomes linear and problem focused.
You're no longer exploring possibilities or living in the moment because your brain wants to eliminate uncertainty as quickly as possible.
So this doesn't just happen in the mind,
Our bodies reflect this state as well.
When we get stressed,
We start to move quickly and purposefully.
Get from point A to point B.
Rush there as fast as possible.
Even our eyes get locked forwards,
Focused on our target,
Whether that be a destination,
Screen or object.
Next time you're outside,
If you observe people around you,
You'll find that you can quite easily spot the ones who are rushing around from that point A to point B in that survival mode.
So if this is you.
.
.
You are definitely not alone.
I've been working in this industry for the past 10 years and I found that most people are stuck in this survival mode.
Life has simply become way more stressful than it was supposed to be.
I want to say that being in fight or flight mode is natural and normal.
But once the danger has passed,
You need to come out of that mode and shift into our baseline rest and digest mode.
And this is absolutely a requirement to live a healthy life.
Through somatic practices,
We can signal to our nervous system that it is safe to return to a more relaxed,
Open-minded and free-flowing state.
One gentle way of offering that signal is through rhythmic circular movement.
Unlike linear movement,
Circles do not have a destination.
There is no quickest route.
The movement simply continues.
In an infinity loop.
This gives your nervous system a very different experience.
Instead of rushing towards an outcome,
Moving linearly,
You're becoming curious about sensation.
And you're flowing and exploring.
So I want you to try this with me now.
Using the wrist,
Start to circle the wrists outwards.
Feel every movement inside the wrist joint.
If there's any crackling or crunching.
And drop the breath down into the diaphragm.
Breathe deeply as you circle the wrists slowly.
Continue this movement as I talk.
When you make slow circles with any body parts,
Whether it be the wrists,
The shoulders,
The ribs,
Spine or hips.
Your brain receives rich sensory information about where your body is in space.
This awareness helps to anchor you to the present moment.
Combined with the steady rhythm of movement and breath.
It encourages the nervous system to soften unnecessary tension.
And shift away from constant vigilance.
At the end of these practices,
You might notice your breathing deepens without trying.
Your jaw will relax.
The shoulders will drop.
And not because we're forcing these relaxation movements.
It's because your body no longer feels that it has to stay braced for action in that survival mode.
Now,
When you do my spiral somatic practices,
Please do not worry about making the perfect circles.
Instead,
See if you can replace that efficiency with curiosity.
Notice what it feels like to move without needing to get anywhere.
Sometimes the nervous system doesn't need us to do more.
It simply needs a different experience.
